An Act of Parliament, which would probably take a year or more, would be required to repeal a 19th-century Act possibly governing the site's use, Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher said yesterday.
The Oamaru Town Hall and Gas Works Sites and Recreation Reserves Vesting Act 1875, which states the land ''cannot be leased to anyone for any purpose'', was probably also relevant to other parts of Oamaru as well, he said. But after the Waitaki District Council voted to support a $4 million redevelopment of the 1951 Itchen St building for a 10-year lease, ''the prospect of a legal challenge was raised''.
''There could be some other situations [where the Act might apply], but because they are so low-key and non-controversial we can get this sorted and they're not going to be under threat. This one is controversial with some people that would take us to court,'' Mr Kircher said.
The decision to halt the negotiations with an unnamed call centre company - understood to be Trustpower - was made at a public excluded council meeting yesterday afternoon.
''We are very mindful that we don't want to lose that business from Oamaru,'' Mr Kircher said. ''We have only gone this far because we wanted to make sure that they had a good future here and that could potentially be at risk. They are back at square one.''
He understood the company had ''very limited options'' in town.
Trustpower's facilities and workstyle manager Catherine Gee, of Tauranga, said yesterday the electricity generator, which employs 101 people in Oamaru - predominantly call centre staff - ''remains committed to exploring all of the options available to us as a commercial tenant in Oamaru''.
The process's lack of public consultation had drawn criticism from some in the community and, now, Cr Melanie Tavendale said, ''having a bit more time means that we do have the ability to be more open with the public''.
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Trustpower could just show some real commitment to Oamaru and build a new building. Ah, but that would actually be a commitment, not just hiring locals on contracts and part time work.